Internet search giant Google is hoping to make a difference in people’s lives in Africa by launching its ‘Impact Challenge‘ for the first time on the continent in South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria. The company is looking to give away a total of $2m divided among several non-profits. Other Google Impact Challenges around the world have resulted in innovations such as smart cameras for wildlife conservation, solar lights for off-grid communities and a mobile application that helps to protect women from domestic violence. In this interview, Google South Africa’s Communications and Public Affairs Manager, Mich Atagana, reveals what the motivation behind the challenge is and how it can benefit Africa. – Gareth van Zyl
It’s a pleasure to welcome Google South Africa’s Communications and Public Affairs Manager, Mich Atagana, on the line from Johannesburg. Mich, Google today announced the launch of its $2m Impact Challenge in South Africa. Can you tell us what this challenge entails exactly?
Yes, thank you so much for having me. Essentially we’ve launched the Google Impact Challenge for the first time in Africa with our launch in South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria. What that means is we have $2m that we want to use to help non-profits who are doing amazing things to impact their community, finding innovative ways to solve problems that are need-based for specific communities and which impacts everyday South Africans. This is the opportunity for non-profits to get involved and get some help to help them make a difference.
Why is Google opening this challenge to non-profits in particular?
This is part of our non-profit arm. So, Google.org works on supporting non-profits and we made a commitment last year in Nigeria. In fact, our CEO Sundar Pichai committed $20m for Africa over the next five years to help non-profits grow and empower communities and African people. And this is one way in which we’re trying to bring that promise to life.
Google has done similar challenges elsewhere in the world, which have resulted in some interesting technology developments. Can you tell us about some of the Impact Challenges that have happened elsewhere?
Yes, we’ve done this in South America, Germany and the US and a lot of the time we find that NGOs, without fail, still find a way to improve people’s lives, some in the most basic of ways. So they make differences in terms of healthcare, education, basic literacy, water consumption and key water products. Therefore, people have done many different things over the last couple of years for Impact Challenges around the world. We’re really hoping that South Africans will find innovative ways to solve problems, but I think South Africans already do that, so it makes perfect sense to open this up to South Africa and the African continent as well thorough Nigeria and Kenya, because it’s critical for someone to support all these good ideas.
Will you be selecting an equal number of finalists from South Africa, Nigeria, and Kenya – how will that process work?
Yes, absolutely, you can think of the Impact Challenge as three different challenges. One in South Africa, one in Kenya and one in Nigeria. The South African one will have 12 finalists. So, a bunch of people will apply and then we will go through an internal process with help from very smart people who have worked with non-profits before and charities. We’ll pick 12 finalists who will then be put up for votes to the public. The public will choose one winner and then at our final event the same 12 finalists will pitch to our judges. We’ve chosen some amazing South Africans to help us. Those judges will choose an additional three winners to join the public vote winner who will get $250 000 each and all 12 finalists win money. Therefore, the four winners get $250 000 each and then the other eight finalists will get $125 000 each.
How will that public vote work, will it just be for people in Africa who are voting or is it open to the rest of the world as well?
For the South African challenge, we’re hoping for people in South Africa to vote for their favourite non-profit based on a description of what they want to do and how they want to spend the money.
Can you tell us about your judges as well? I believe that you have the likes of Ferial Haffajee on your judging panel.
We’re so lucky that we have such powerful and influential people who also really care about changes in South Africa. So we have Ferial Haffajee, Yvonne Chaka Chaka, Simphiwe Dana, Maps Maponyane, Nomzamo Mbatha and obviously our country director, Luke McKend as well. We also have Rapelang Rabana who is an entrepreneur and computer scientist, so we have many amazing people who are helping us make decisions.
Are the entries open from today?
Yes, it’s open from today and anyone can apply. It closes on July 4 and from then, we’ll begin the internal judging process. Then on November 5, we’ll open it up to the public to judge. Then during the week of November 26 we’ll announce our winners.
As a final question, what does Google hope to get out of this process, particularly in Africa where there are many unique challenges on the continent?
Our hope is that we can help someone make a difference. As a company that is based in Africa, it is absolutely imperative that we contribute to helping make people’s lives better. That we continue to contribute to economic growth, economic opportunity and helping people live their best lives with the best opportunities available to them. And if these non-profits are doing that, we want to help them in some way to make sure that really does happen.
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